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Journal of Nonlinear Optical Physics & Materials

Generation of Non-Classical Light by Four-Wave Mixing in Semiconductors

A. M. Fox, Maurizio Dabbicco, J.F. Ryan

Published Jun 1, 1998• 0 citations
Publisher

Abstract

We describe experiments to generate non-classical quadrature squeezed states of light by four-wave mixing in semiconductors. Squeezing can be achieved with either the diagonal or off-diagonal components of the third-order nonlinear susceptibility tensor. We have demonstrated squeezing by self-phase modulation in ZnS at 780 nm, and by cross-phase modulation in ZnSe at 960 nm. Possibilities for generating squeezed light in other materials by these techniques are discussed.

DOI
10.1142/s0218863598000156

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We describe experiments to generate non-classical quadrature squeezed states of light by four-wave mixing in semiconductors. Squeezing can be achieved with either the diagonal or off-diagonal components of the third-order nonlinear susceptibility tensor. We have demonstrated squeezing by self-phase modulation in ZnS at 780 nm, and by cross-phase modulation in ZnSe at 960 nm. Possibilities for generating squeezed light in other materials by these techniques are discussed.
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The signal to noise ratio of optical systems is ultimately limited by the shot noise due to the Poissonian statistics of the light field. In recent years there has been a considerable effort to find ways to overcome this limitation by generating non-classical light with sub-shot noise statistics. Several groups have demonstrated non-classical light generation in diode lasers or light emitting diodes, and the amplitude fluctuations have been reduced substantially below the shot noise level [1,2]. However, for phase-sensitive measurements it is necessary to generate the more general quadrature squeezed states. Such quadrature squeezed light can be generated either by second-order or third-order nonlinear processes provided the nonlinear material has very low losses at the optical wavelength. To date, the successful generation schemes for quadrature squeezed light have been restricted to atomic vapours, optical fibres, or second-order nonlinear crystals [3]. The possibility of using the large χ(3) nonlinearities of semiconductors at frequencies below the band gap where the optical absorption is small has been discussed in the literature, but so far there have been no successful experiments [4-6]. In this paper we report measurements on GaAs/Al0.3Ga0.7As multiple quantum well waveguides and bulk ZnS in the wavelength range 750 - 890nm. Although we measure much larger nonlinearities in the quantum wells, the strong two-photon absorption is detrimental for squeezed light generation. However, in the ZnS where the laser frequency is below the two- photon absorption edge, we have succeeded in generating quadrature squeezed light in a semiconductor for the first time. On the basis of our results, we would expect that squeezed light could be generated in many other semiconductor systems provided the photon energy is less than half the band-gap energy.
We have generated pulsed squeezed light using the third-order nonlinear susceptibility of the semiconductor ZnS at room temperature. The photon energy was chosen to be below midgap in order to minimize nonlinear absorption. Efficient quadrature squeezing of 2.2 dB (40%) was obtained using 125 fs pulses at a center wavelength of 780 nm. The measured noise is suppressed below the quantum limit over the entire range of our detection bandwidth (30-50 MHz). The scheme employed can generally be applied to semiconductors, and opens the way for squeezed light generation over a wide range of wavelengths.
The possibility of generating light in a squeezed quantum state during saturated light amplification in a semiconductor amplifier is theoretically analyzed. Due to four-wave mixing process during amplification, weak components of the spontaneous emission of the medium with symmetric frequency shifts relative to the strong amplified wave acquire the quantum properties of two-mode squeezed light. The squeezing of quadrature components occurs in the range of frequency shifts of several GHz (∼\sim∼ the inverse relaxation time of the charge carrier density) and can reach 10 dB or more under optimal conditions. The formation of a two-mode squeezing phase facilitates the observation of the squeezing effect, in which a strong wave, playing the role of a local wave, exhibits quadrature noise suppression without additional homodyne detection.
We have generated pulsed squeezed light using the third-order nonlinear susceptibility of the semiconductor ZnS at room temperature. The photon energy was chosen to be below midgap in order to minimize nonlinear absorption. Efficient quadrature squeezing of 2.2 dB (40%) was obtained using 125 fs pulses at a center wavelength of 780 nm. The measured noise is suppressed below the quantum limit over the entire range of our detection bandwidth (30–50 MHz). The scheme employed can generally be applied to semiconductors, and opens the way for squeezed light generation over a wide range of wavelengths.